Great Backyard Bird Count volunteer counters had submitted
311 checklists covering 28,336 birds of 704 species by the time sunrise began
creeping across North America on the first day of the 17th annual count on
Friday, Feb. 14.

By the time sunrise slid across Pennsylvania just before 7
a.m., the count had grown to 373 checklists covering 32,575 birds of 767
species.

Pennsylvanian participants were not among the first in the
U.S. to submit checklists, which included a questionable midnight report from a
woman in Columbiana County, Ohio, that covered 25 species, including 36 Canada
geese, 30 mourning doves, 50 European starlings, 14 American goldfinches, five
ring-necked pheasants and one great blue heron.

The first eastern U.S. report came from a woman in Suffolk
County, N.Y., and noted 12 species, including 12 American goldfinches and eight
mourning doves.

A 6:07 a.m. report from a man at the Fort Stewart Important
Bird Area in Liberty County, Ga. He tallied four barred owls and three eastern
screech owls.

The annual citizen-science tally of birds spotted in quick
scans of backyards and other spots across the globe, launched Friday, Feb. 14,
for a long-weekend run through Monday, Feb. 17.

The count allows anyone anywhere on Earth to count birds for
at least 15 minutes on one or more days of the count and then enter a report on
that count at www.birdcount.org.

GBBC organizers, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, National
Audubon Society and Bird Studies Canada, post updates on the mounting tallies
throughout the weekend on that same website, and later make the data available
to researchers.

Last year more than 34.5 million birds of 3,610 species were
counted in 111 countries and independent territories.

Pennsylvania is perennially among the top sources of
reports. A total of 7,173 tallies were submitted from the Keystone State last
year, ranking us behind only California, with 8,977, and New York, with 7,706.

PennLive outdoor and nature writer Marcus Schneck will be
covering the Pennsylvania angle of the Great Backyard Bird Count throughout the
weekend.

He'll run a live chat about the Great Backyard Bird County,
and all things avian in Pennsylvania, on PennLive at 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 15.

He also hopes to connect with readers also participating in
the count at any point throughout the weekend. If you're planning to do a
count, contact Schneck at mschneck@pennlive.com.

In addition to discussing your results, he is hoping you
will share your photos and videos of birds in your backyard, or other count
location, during the weekend.